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NHL EASTERN CONFERENCE FINAL: LIGHTNING v PENGUINS

May 25, 2016

Anton Stralman

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Practice Day

Q. You guys have been so battle tested the last couple of years. What kind of a test is tomorrow night?
ANTON STRALMAN: Yeah. Yeah, it's a big test, obviously. What I like about our team is that the bigger the test, the bigger the response we have. Just like last year, we were in the exact same spot.
I think we feel pretty comfortable about it. We know what we can do, and we know what we have to do. It will be a fun game tomorrow night.

Q. You haven't had the lead an awful lot in this series. How hard is it to chase against this team, and how important is that in a Game 7, in their building, to have a lead actually?
ANTON STRALMAN: Yeah, you obviously -- you always want to play with the lead, and always the first goal is big. But, again, we were down 2-0 in Game 5 and came back from that. So it's not cut in stone, the outcome of the game, no matter if you're down a goal or two.
We almost came back last night too. Just a little too big of a gap. But I definitely think that our start and our compete and intensity is going to be key tomorrow night.

Q. Have you ever been involved in Game 7? You still have the goose bumps going into the start of Game 7?
ANTON STRALMAN: Yeah, Game 7, it's special, no matter what sport you play in. I think there's so much going into those games that it's hard to kind of describe for everybody, and it's hard to know what it's like if you haven't been in there yourself. But it's what athletes dream of and aim for and all those memories and all those dreams that you have as a kid kind of comes true, and you just have to enjoy it and have fun with it.

Q. I understand you've been on the winning side of it. Is it part of luck or secret work, or how would you --
ANTON STRALMAN: I don't know. I think it's obviously a part of being on good teams, but also enjoying it. I don't think you can play to your potential if you're not embracing it and just have fun with it and enjoying it instead of putting a lot of pressure on yourself and all that stuff.
You play at your best when you don't think too much and just go out and play hockey like you have for a lot of years, and just, yeah, enjoy it.

Q. What do you remember about going into the Garden last year? Anything specific about it that that stood out? I remember afterwards Stamkos said there was a calmness before the game. Was there a confidence that you could win the game even though you had just lost the previous game and --
ANTON STRALMAN: Yeah, I definitely think there's a calmness within our group and how we approach games like these. Just like in Game 5, when we got hit by adversity and all that stuff, we just kept going and believed in our system and the way we play, and that's usually what gets you the win. That's what we did in New York in those two games, 5 and 7 there. We just went in. We believed in ourselves. We played to our structure and to our strength, and we pulled off two really, really good games.
We know we have it in us. It's just a matter of finding that emotion and that energy.

Q. Last year I'm sure a lot of people didn't think you'd be able to win that game, but given their record in Game 7s, does that -- as a team, does that kind of motivate you guys that no one is really believing in us other than in here?
ANTON STRALMAN: It doesn't bother me. I don't really care what other people think and say. It's all about what we think as a group, and we obviously believe in one another, and we play for each other. We're a good team when we're doing that. So I'm not looking at it that we're an underdog or whatever. I'm just looking to go and win a hockey game and play (indiscernible).

Q. How do you think Vasi has played in this series?
ANTON STRALMAN: I think he's been great. I think he's been -- he's been giving us a chance to win every time he's been in. Unfortunately, we maybe haven't delivered for him as much as we wanted, but he's been tremendous. And I said this before, it doesn't matter who's in net for us. We have tremendous faith in both of them, and they're two really, really good goalies. We feel very fortunate to have those guys.

Q. (Inaudible) with Crosby and the way he's been playing?
ANTON STRALMAN: Well, he's obviously a great player, no doubt about it. But I think he's not going to win tomorrow night's game. It's going to be the Pittsburgh Penguins that's going to win the game for them. He's obviously one of those guys you have to keep an extra eye on, but they've got four lines that's really firing and contributing and helping them win and succeed.
He's a big part of the puzzle, but he's definitely not the only guy. We all have to be on our toes and make sure we do our job against whatever line is out there and we'll be fine.

Q. Do you think that Vasilevskiy and the job that he's done, most people look at Game 7 as a time for veterans to step up, but what's it like also counting on some other young guys, Vasilevskiy, Kucherov, to help kind of get you over the hump here in Game 7?
ANTON STRALMAN: Yeah, I think the mix of the type of players we have and everything is good. I think we have some veteran presence that can help out, but I think just the experience from last year, how we've been through this together, is a big part of this. I'm sure all those memories from last year is kind of building up inside us right now, and we're going to find that same type of energy and calmness that we just talked about.
And I like our team. I like the mix we have. Kuch has been huge for us, obviously, just like Vasi and the other young guys. And we work well together. It's a good team.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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